


boats and birds

by aeriamamaduck



Series: Tell Me Where Your Love Lies [5]
Category: Yuri!!! on Ice (Anime)
Genre: 19th century inspired, Alpha Katsuki Yuuri, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Alternate Universe - 19th Century, Alternate Universe - Royalty, Fictional/alternate history, First Kiss, Gen, Memory Loss, Midquel, Mpreg, Non-Traditional Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Omega Verse, Omega Victor Nikiforov, Omega Yuri Plisetsky, Other, POV Yuri Plisetsky, Past Abuse, Politics, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Pre-Relationship, Prince Katsuki Yuuri, Yuri and Victor are brothers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-07
Updated: 2020-10-29
Packaged: 2021-03-06 15:26:58
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 18,261
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26291104
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/aeriamamaduck/pseuds/aeriamamaduck
Summary: An omega prince copes with changes.Set between chapters 33-34 of"tell me where your love lies"
Relationships: Katsuki Yuuri/Victor Nikiforov, Otabek Altin & Yuri Plisetsky, Otabek Altin/Yuri Plisetsky, Victor Nikiforov & Yuri Plisetsky
Series: Tell Me Where Your Love Lies [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1796530
Comments: 42
Kudos: 106





	1. you can hide underneath me and come out at night

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> OHHHH Y'ALL ARE IN FOR A TREAT
> 
> This is a midquel to "tell me where your love lies" set between chapters 33 and 34 and in Yuri's pov. It will span a handful of chapters and involve the political goings-on that were spoken of in chapter 33.
> 
> I hope you all enjoy! in case you missed them, **[there are two prequel stories I posted in the past few months](https://archiveofourown.org/series/1796530)** , so check em out and please leave a comment!

_Yuri could hear the sound of music coming from inside the house, and it looked like Papa wasn't going to finish playing with his flowers anytime soon._

_He'd already made Yuri a crown of daisies, and allowed him to play in the wet dirt for a good long while. After washing his hands under the garden spigot, Yuri wanted to see what Victor and his Mama were up to. Not even Makkachin was outside, but that was normal, since the big poodle was practically Victor's shadow._

_"Where's Mama?" Yuri demanded, tugging at his father's sleeve with a wet, pudgy hand._

_Papa didn't bat him away. He turned around, patient as ever, and smiled at Yuri as he said, "Inside with Vitya. Are your hands washed?"_

_"Yes," Yuri said, doing his very best to stop himself from pouting. Mama scolded him when he contorted his face, warning him that his face would stay that way if he kept it up. But sometimes everyone did stupid things that made Yuri want to scowl forever. Even Victor, that big dummy._

_Papa's smile widened and he reached over to ruffle Yuri's already-messy hair. "Good boy. Remember to wipe your feet before you go in, or else Mama will never let us hear the end of it," he warned with a wink that made Yuri feel big, as if they were the only two in on a secret._

_Making sure to wipe his feet as Papa said, Yuri ran back inside the big house and towards the sound of music from Mama's phonograph. Sometimes she played her piano along to whatever they were listening to, and those were times when Victor would hold Yuri back, telling him that Mama didn't like to be bothered when she was playing music. So he would sit on either Victor's or their father's lap and try to listen as quietly as possible, fidgeting all the while as the urge to run towards Mama just got stronger and stronger, her flowery scent making him want to bury his face in her neck to feel safe._

_But babies did that, and Yuri wasn't a baby anymore, even if Victor made him feel like it sometimes._

_He found his mother and brother in the main hall, dancing in the big space of it with Makkachin watching avidly from his spot near the piano. Yuri stopped running and instead made his way over to Makkachin's side, quiet as a mouse, and sat down next to him, watching Mama and Victor carefully once Makkachin gave him a greeting lick on his cheek._

_Wiping the drool off, Yuri tried not to fidget while he watched Victor lead, a pleased smile on his face as their mother murmured quiet praise when his feet moved with an ease and grace that fascinated Yuri. Victor wasn't_ that _much bigger than Yuri, even if he acted like he was much older and smarter, but he was almost as graceful as their father, and he even looked like him too. Now, more than ever, Victor looked as big as he acted, spinning Mama around the floor as though they were on the gigantic ballroom from Papa's stories of when he and Mama met._

_Having had enough of just watching, Yuri got up and ran over, butting his head against Victor's side to step in and thrust his arms up to his mother. "I want to dance too!" he declared, sticking his tongue out at Victor, who was pouting and rubbing his side._

_Mama looked even less pleased, raising one eyebrow at Yuri and crossing her arms in front of her chest. "A prince does not headbutt other people, Yura, and he doesn't demand that a lady dance with him," she lectured._

_Yuri only felt mildly embarrassed by her scolding, because when she spoke to him in that way she treated him like a big boy, and not like a stupid baby. "Like this, Yura," he heard Victor say, apparently forgetting Yuri's assault and executing a perfect bow as he held his arm out towards their mother. "May I have this dance, my Lady?" he asked in his most snobby voice._

_Mama smiled at them both and extended her hand to Victor's again. "You may, Prince Victor," she replied with that same pretty grace that made Yuri believe that Mama had to be a fairy, wise and beautiful as she taught them both and called them 'Prince.'_

_Papa was a Prince, and his Papa was Emperor of Rutha, ruler of the land. Yuri had only met him perhaps twice, the first time when he was a little baby, and he remembered feeling scared when his father grew angry at the strange man with an unfamiliar scent. Yuri remembered that the man had held him too, but it didn't feel the same as when Papa held him._

_"Vika?" Yuri asked, much more polite than before, for his Mama's sake. "Can you show me?"_

_Victor and Mama stopped, and Mama nodded at Victor with a smile before his big brother turned to Yuri with a smile of his own. "Of course! Come here, I'll show you how to do the bow first!"_

* * *

The streets of Hasetsu were bustling even more than usual.

Yuri shoveled down his bowl of katsudon like he was starving, and he could feel his mother's grimace like a finger tapping his forehead. He couldn't help it, though. Yuri's first, clearest memories were of hunger that made his stomach cramp, and he had to admit that katsudon was the most delicious food he'd had in a very long time.

Well...maybe it wasn't his first memory. Not anymore. Not after everything came to light and Yuri began to remember what life was like before the nights when Victor and Makkachin kept him from freezing in the night and Victor divided their meals into equal portions, Yuri grateful for any relief and forgetting every other woe in their lives. It worked a little too well and now there were pieces of Yuri's past that came up during the most inopportune moments, and he felt like he was looking at someone else's life.

Then it just made sense, because his idiot big brother was in those memories, with that dumb smile of his. Now Victor was preoccupied with his Prince Katsudon, the baby they were having, and the banquet being held in a few days to welcome Xi'anese representatives to "negotiate" Prince Katsudon's marriage to their emperor's sister so they could throw Antonov off.

While Yuri remembered their parents now, it still felt strange to sit in front of them and have them act like his mother and father, especially when Yuri had long believed them dead and had very little memory of them. He just knew they were dead, and after figuring out the truth he knew that he and Victor had been abandoned, and Victor had done what he could to keep them both alive, even if Yuri had to forget and focus on surviving, grounding every inch of himself in his brother's constant presence.

Now Victor was somewhere else and Yuri felt cast adrift, even though he remembered loving the two people who sat in front of him, and feeling safe when he was with them. Yuri could readily admit he was still mad. Mad at them for abandoning them out of pride or grief, and mad at Victor for leaving him in the most awkward situation he'd ever experienced in his life. 

What did Victor expect? That this would be easy for Yuri? If that was the case he was the biggest idiot in the world. In less than a year Yuri found out that he was fucking royalty and, as far as he knew, his brother was a fucking Emperor-in-exile. And soon after that their grandfather waltzed into the palace with their parents in tow, both of them alive and worse for wear, but a deep, buried instinct in Yuri made him feel safer than ever before, even compared to that first night in Hasetsu when it was clear that Prince Yuuri wasn't going to rape them.

But it was still a strange, foreign feeling, and part of Yuri still felt like his parents were strangers. But what could he do? He'd forgotten them completely and hadn't seen them in a decade. Victor had been the constant in his life for such a long time, and now Victor was focusing on the Katsudon, and it was just Yuri and his complicated relationship with their parents.

Adding to the tension was the fact that there was an alpha sitting with them, like a loyal hound, a shortsword at his side while he watched the area around them with dark eyes and an eagle-like gaze that made Yuri stare. Otabek was apparently the only strange alpha his parents trusted for a long time. After all he'd saved Yuri's father after finding him injured and with amnesia. He'd also stood at Leonid's side like a shadow, showing him the utmost respect as though he were already wearing a crown. That respect somehow extended to Yuri and Victor, whom he still addressed formally when in private. It was unnerving, but the resulting pride that would rise into Yuri's chest was...a bit intoxicating.

He had no idea how to be "Prince Yuri Leonidovich," but he would rather be that than an omegan harem slave. A nobody who could only trust his brother.

That reminder stung after all of Yuri's internal complaints. Victor had borne numerous humiliations and assaults over the years for Yuri's sake, shielding him from the worst of it as best he could. Yuri still remembered that time Victor was let out of the dark cellar. Well, not so much "let out" as dragged out, every inch of him covered in bruises and his voice ragged from crying and screaming. Yuri remembered wanting to die then, before he did something stupid that would tempt the Madam to take her fury out on Victor again.

So it wasn't difficult to admit that he could survive situations like this without his stupid brother. He was lucky, luckier than ever, and the Katsu-- _Yuuri_ loved Victor, and practically worshiped him, so that was good.

Most impressive of all was that their parents had begun to trust Yuuri and Princess Mari, if only because Victor and Yuri spoke up for them. Yuri might have felt more at ease if the Katsudon were here, no matter how awkward _he_ was. As it was, Yuri wondered what on earth they were supposed to talk about, especially with Otabek around. 

The other three with him took polite bites from their food, finishing a bit later than Yuri had, and his father hummed with pleasure once his bowl was bare. "Delicious. I can see why your brother loves eating this every day," he marveled in Ruthenian, his goddamn smile identical to Victor's.

Ugh. No. It was the other way around. It was just so bizarre to see Victor's familiar gestures and features in someone considerably older. But he was right; Victor loved wolfing down a huge bowl of katsudon whenever he had a chance, just like Yuuri did. It was disgustingly sweet to watch them together with those stupid, moony eyes and the cloud of pheromones whirling around them. So being around them was more nuisance than effective time wasting, in Yuri's opinion.

His parents weren't all that different, though what surprised Yuri was the fact that it all felt so familiar. Especially their respective scents. Their intimate, familiar gestures touched some deep instinct in Yuri that reminded him that he was safe. He was home and he had his family around him.

It felt like it was in constant battle with all the rage burning through his veins.

Thinking of it made Yuri's chest burn, and had he been with Victor, Yuuri, or the Nishigoris, they might have understood that rage, but suddenly Yuri felt embarrassed by his gut reactions, especially in front of his parents and Otabek.

Fucking Otabek, eating like a perfect gentleman and exuding that stoic confidence that Yuri envied, his sharp eucalyptus scent infuriatingly pleasant for an alpha's. "What about you?" Yuri asked, throat somehow not so tight as he spoke to yet another alpha while trying _extremely_ hard to not sound defensive. "It's your first time trying katsudon, right?"

Yeah. That sounded normal. Like they weren't alpha and omega.

Otabek looked at him, surprise flaring in his eyes for the briefest second before he cleared his throat and gave Yuri a neutral smile while looking at him steadily. "It's delicious." Yuri could tell he had barely bitten back his usual honorific now that they were in public, but holy shit, there was... _something_ to the fact that Otabek was speaking to him and looking at him like he wasn't looking down on Yuri, or trying to assert dominance like any other alpha from Rutha. No, he had answered Yuri with honesty, and treated him like an equal. 

It wasn't so completely surprising after living in the royal house of Hasetsu for so long, being treated like any typical member of the court and then being respected as the younger brother of the Prince's mate. But Otabek was a Kazian alpha, close enough to Ruthenian culture that he should have acted like all those alphas who had come to the brothel, the ones who leered at him while Victor did what he could to shield him.

But Yuri found himself smirking back, pleased that Otabek was enjoying the food. 

He felt the same about his parents' enjoyment, and it was one soothing thing in the middle of all the political bullshit going on in the palace.

Being royalty sucked.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please comment!
> 
> If anyone would like to help me in a more personal way, if able to, please check out the links on my twitter: [@ducksfucka](https://twitter.com/DucksFucka)


	2. ebbing and flowing, and pushed by a breeze

_Yuri had no idea what was going on._

_He hated when everyone kept secrets from him, and even now Victor was keeping secrets when he was usually the first to let Yuri in on something particularly juicy._

_This time Yuri had to be the one to seek him out, late at night, sneaking towards Victor's room, which was across from his. He could smell the distress coming from his parents' bedroom, and it frightened him, loathe as he was to admit it even to himself. And Papa was gone after scenting Yuri while Mama cried and Victor stood up straight, trying to act big._

_He didn't bother knocking. He could shove his brother's door open whenever he felt like it, and Victor never said a thing. He could have been reading or practicing some complicated dance steps by himself. He'd either obey Yuri's demands to be read to or show him those dances, even letting him lead at times no matter how short he was. But that wouldn't be for much longer. Yuri was for sure going to be taller than that beanpole Victor one day._

_Tonight Victor wasn't doing much of anything. Just holding Makkachin close to him, hiding his face in the poodle's fur. Makkachin yipped at the sight of Yuri, and Victor rapidly lifted his head and spotted Yuri, who stood completely still as he stared at his brother. Victor's eyes were red from crying, and he sniffled before hurriedly wiping his face with his sleeve._

_"What happened?" Yuri asked, clambering up Victor's bed and sitting in front of him with no intention of leaving. "Mama's scent smells wrong, and Papa hasn't come back yet."  
  
_

_Victor swallowed and kept blinking rapidly, looking away from Yuri and saying in a small voice that didn't sound like his, "Papa's gone away, Yura."_

_"Gone? Gone where?!" Papa rarely left their home on his own. He would often say that he couldn't bear to be away from them, so why would he go?_

_"To...To fight. Because_ his _father was killed," Victor explained, as if that answered any of Yuri's questions. "Do you remember our grandfather? The Emperor?"_

_An old man with white hair and a beard, smelling much different than Mama and Papa. Almost like their other grandfather, Yakov, but still different in so many ways. The taller of the two men didn't visit their home, it was always them going somewhere smellier and noisier to see him, and Papa and Mama always looked hurt and angry afterwards. Papa's father certainly never took them on walks the way Mama's father did, and he never did more than ask about their health or what they'd learned since the last time they saw each other. Victor was better at answering those questions._

_"Someone killed him," Victor said, reaching over to tug Yuri towards him. Yuri went easily, suddenly feeling afraid but stubbornly hiding it. He was brave. Braver than Victor. He wasn't going to cry just because...because Papa left them and their grandfather was dead. Victor buried his face in Yuri's hair and murmured, "Papa said he had to fight for...for the throne. Because he wants me to be Emperor one day."_

* * *

The palace was full of activity when they returned, servants scrambling back and forth in preparation. Minami was usually among them, zipping through the halls in an overexcited frenzy, but today he wasn't anywhere to be found. That hadn't really been unusual these past few months, especially after Victor's mating to Yuuri became common knowledge within the court. As to the reason why, Yuri still had no clue. He just wanted to press what advantages he had now, and not allow things to just stay secret.

He knew many things now, either because people told him right away or he figured it out himself. He wasn't playing at guessing now, not when everything that was happening around him was important, and had everything to do with his family.

It was also the kind of political bullshit Victor and their parents understood much better than he did, which was infuriating. But right now it was all everyone in the palace could do to fool Konstantin Antonov, all the way down to the scullery maids, who were just as loyal as any courtier with their wordy oaths.

For some reason Victor knew more about all this shit than even Yuuri, who had his part to play. Victor knew the name of the princess who was supposed to be coming in two days. Victor knew by now that Princess Zhilian was a younger sibling of Prince Regent of Xi'an, and an omega. He knew that she enjoyed painting and horseback riding, and she was the same age as the Katsudon. 

That was one thing Yuri heard from his brother's own mouth, and so did their parents. 

Their father, with that same carefully observant look in his eyes that Victor would get, peered at the movement happening around them, which included servants running to and fro with decorations, rags for cleaning, and bolts of fabric. "This definitely looks familiar," he said with a soft smirk. "It's almost the same as back in the Imperial Palace in Petra, when the Bride Market would arrive whenever my brothers came of age."

"Bride Market?" Yuri asked, exchanging a look of equal confusion and shock. He'd never heard of such a thing. Not even in the brothel.

After a moment Otabek gave a little grin. "I've heard of this. They do the same in Kaziah, though it's more...playful than in Rutha. Eligible brides are shown to a noble son who has come of age or is looking for a consort."

The name sounded tasteless. A bad joke in bad company. And it reminded Yuri of standing in the throne room nearly a year ago, dressed in a whore's red and trying not to shrink under the alphas' gazes and being judged like a piece of livestock. Worse still, he hadn't come here as anyone's prospective groom. "At least it's just the one bride this time," Yuri muttered, suddenly imagining a ridiculous scene where his father was presented with a parade of consorts who _weren't_ his mother. Or else his father being presented as some fucking alpha's consort. 

Then he went still when his mother suddenly stroked his hair, gently running her fingers through it in the most soothing way. Ah. One of those _familiar_ non-memories that kept popping up in his head. The gesture was both familiar and difficult to remember in great detail. Her scent certainly helped in a way few things had, and Yuri could feel his discomfort start to melt away. Then he remembered that she was doing in front of Otabek and heat exploded in his cheeks. 

Drawing her hand back, his mother kept looking around at the decorated hall with a fascinated yet concerned look in her face. "Your brother...seems to be taking this all well," she said in a quiet voice, frowning a little as she watched two maids walk by with laundry. 

Yes, Yuri heard it in her voice. _Too well_. And judging by the equal look of worry on his father's face, the older omega agreed. Yuri couldn't help glancing at Otabek, who had subtly turned his attention elsewhere while remaining at his father's side, making himself as unobtrusive as possible. It reminded Yuri of doing everything he could to make himself small and invisible. Even when he wanted to lash out and strike. But there were the moments when being small and quiet would be an advantage. It was the best way to discover secrets.

As for his parents' endless fretting over that idiot Victor, Yuri rolled his eyes and thought of the cloud of pheromones that followed in Victor's wake nowadays, reeking of nest and alpha, of all things. With a shrug, Yuri carelessly said, "The baby and his stupid alpha have him acting like he's drunk. He's completely happy."

Or else he was putting on an act. Selfish, altruistic shit that he was. The same act that shielded Yuri from the truth, from all the pain Victor kept to himself for ten years, ending in a decade's worth of lies and so much anger on Yuri's part.

Nowadays it seemed as though everyone had gone mad over this baby, and while it was a source of fascination for Yuri too, there were other important matters to take care of. His stupid brother was probably fucking around with his knothead mate, out of sight until they eventually emerged, stinking of each other.

And as though someone had blown out a candle, his mother's mood instantly changed, and she was smiling broadly at her mate. "There now, I remembered what else I needed to do today that didn't involve preparing for a visiting princess. The Queen and I are still working on the little one's clothes.

Baby clothes. And his mother was acting like it was the greatest joy one could experience. What boredom. But it made his mother happy, and kept her from worrying about the war and everyone who wanted to kill them.

No, it was Yuri's father who worried about that, even as he smiled as he gazed at his wife and her visible excitement. "At this rate you'll make enough clothes for the babe and the Nishigoris' daughters," he joked, his smile so much like Victor's it was still mildly shocking.

But Yuri smiled too at the mention of the triplets. They really did remind him of a litter of kittens. Trouble-making kittens.

* * *

With everyone otherwise occupied, Yuri escaped the suddenly overwhelming activity around him by deciding to go find Princess Mari. She was as preoccupied with the baby as everyone else was, but she seemed to be able to take everything in stride. So with Potya in tow and a general exasperation Yuri made his way to the door to her chamber.

His long hours of training were over with, and it bothered him to have to go at it by himself. Yuuri had been at his side ever since Victor had to stop doing some of the heavier training with swords and daggers, and nowadays he and Yuuri were too preoccupied to even pick up a bow and arrow. On his own, Yuuri was a pretty good opponent, and Yuri had no shortage of pride over being able to keep up with an older alpha. Today, however, the only challenge was Lady Minako's barked orders, and Yuri could meet those easily. He'd always been able to push beyond his limits.

He was about to knock when he heard Mari say in a reasonable tone, "...knows if things would've been any different if you'd spoken up before."

"But I couldn't, Princess!" That was Minami's voice, and he sounded totally despondent. "I'm a servant, and...I'm _nothing_ compared to Prince Victor! Even if he'd noticed me first he would've chosen Victor instead! And he's so happy...and that makes _me_ happy too, but...It still hurts. Not as bad as it used to, but it hurts. I used to fantasize that Prince Yuuri and I--"

What. The fuck.

No, he couldn't be _serious_. Him too?!

_Fantasize?!_

Yuri scowled and exchanged a glance at Potya, who stared up at him with her wide, bright eyes like she too was in disbelief. Fucking hell, was that why Minami had been missing in action all this time?

Over the fucking Katsudon, of all people.

Yuri kicked the door open and shouted, "Are you _fucking_ serious?!"

His shock only doubled when he saw that Minami was sitting before Mari as though they weren't princess and servant. Well, he _was_ until he practically jumped out of his seat with an 'eep' noise and scrambled behind Mari's chair, peering out and looking panicked until he noticed that it was Yuri who had kicked the door in. "Prince Yuri!"

"Oh, hey, Yurio! I wasn't expecting to see you," Mari greeted, giving her pipe a few puffs while she smirked at him.

Potya clambered her way up to Yuri's shoulder, perching herself there while Yuri glared at the princess and at Minami, who finally managed to look abashed as he poked his head out further and blurted while blushing, "I'm sorry, Yurio! I shouldn't have said any of that, it's just--"

"Fuck, no. Shit, I'm not mad, just...You had feelings for _Prince Katsudon?"_ Yuri asked, still more than a little bit mortified to hear this from anyone other than stupid Victor, who just wouldn't stop _pining_ over the damn alpha, even after being mated and knocked up. 

" _Have_ feelings. And yes, it seems so," Mari put in, blowing out a few clouds of smoke that made Potya sneeze.

"How did _you_ know?" Yuri asked, frowning at the princess.

With a shrug, Mari replied, "I'm Future Queen. I know _almost_ everything. And it's a bit hard to miss when you see adorable omegas pining after your oblivious alpha brother."

'Oblivious' was right, even though that exact classification tended to clash with Yuuri's neurotic personality, which was annoying by itself. And then Minami, brushing a damn tear off his cheek, entreated, "Please don't say anything, Yurio! I wouldn't live it down if Yuuri actually, finally rejected me! I'm not jealous of your brother Victor, it's just..." 

He still looked so heartbroken and Yuri was so thoroughly perplexed by it. By the complicated and bothersome emotions that caused his own brother and parents such pain, and now even Minami, of all people. He felt Potya but his cheek with her head, like she too wanted a reply, and Yuri remembered how love made people do some fucked up shit. Even someone as strong as Victor. And his own parents. Clearing his throat, Yuri muttered, "Uh...Yeah, of course, I won't say anything, but...Seriously? How long has this been going on?"

Minami's cheeks turned a deeper red and he gave Yuri a bashful smile as he said, "Most of my life. He's just so graceful and kind and handsome...But he's a prince, and I'm just a servant. He never noticed how I felt either."

"Well, the idiot doesn't really notice anything until it hops on his dick," Yuri muttered, eyeing Mari after she let out a totally undignified snort and put her pipe between pursed lips. His parents would have been mortified to listen to him, but it was the plain truth, and Yuri didn't regret a word of it.

Face turning a cherry color, Minami muffled a squeak behind his hands, letting out some tiny sniffles before clearing his throat and saying reassuringly, "I'm alright. I promise, it's just...I realized that avoiding the Prince wasn't helping either, and...Well, the Princess has always been willing to listen to my nonsense. It was hard to just accept that all my dreams were just dreams, in the end."

Those words reminded Yuri of Christophe. How the other omega would vent such things with his head in Victor's lap, all while remembering his dead parents, how he ended up trapped away from his home and made a slave. Then Minami smiled widely, adding in a determined voice, "But as long as I can loyally serve the Katsuki family, I'll be just as happy! And that includes being loyal to Prince Victor too!"

And that was oddly heartwarming to hear. But hadn't Yuri worried about there being people out there who wanted them dead? Yet here was Minami, professing his love and loyalty all at once with such sincerity, and like he'd said before, he was just a servant.

Yet Yuri suddenly trusted him above any of Queen Hiroko's courtiers.


	3. I live to make you free

_Victor was crying and Makkachin was whimpering._

_No. That was wrong. Victor never cried._

_That...that was true. It was what Yuri knew._

_In all his life he'd never seen..._

_And if he had, he couldn't remember. He couldn't be bothered to try remembering because he was so tired and hungry and cold._

_His throat burned like he'd been the one crying._

_He had to be a big boy. As brave as Victor, because...he was here. Crying, but he was here._

_He stirred under the furs and looked towards where Victor and Makkachin sat._

_They were both far away from the fireplace, practically in the darkness._

_From what he could see, Victor was hugging Makkachin to his chest, his shoulders shaking like he was still crying. His silhouette looked like..._

_Yuri couldn't see them. He couldn't remember. He just knew that they were dead, because that was what Victor had told him._

_Dead. Never coming back._

_Why that was, Yuri had no real clue. He couldn't remember how they got here, to this lonely and cold place. He just knew that he was cold despite the roaring fire, and he was incredibly hungry._

_"...Victor?" he croaked, the other boy's name the clearest thing in his mind._

_The sound of his ruined, boyish voice drew Victor's attention, and he lifted his incredibly familiar face so Yuri could see him._

_His face. That was his brother. His only family. When he tried to think of anyone else, he just...couldn't. There was nothing but a blank where other faces should have been._

_It didn't matter. He wanted food and warmth. He didn't even really notice how pink Victor's eyes were, or how tear-streaked his face was. He just wanted his brother. Now._

_Victor nodded quickly, and let the dog go so they could both make their way to Yuri's side._

_Heat came with Makkachin, the poodle happily licking and nuzzling Yuri's face and laying down right on top of him like he weighed nothing. But he was warm and affectionate and **here** , substituting the emptiness in those barren spaces of Yuri's mind. _

_Mother. Father._

_They were gone. Not only dead, but completely erased._

_Those simple facts were meaningless next to hunger and the need to stay alive, to remain at his brother's side._

_He forgot the flight. The faces too. All but one._

_That face was before him now, brow furrowed with worry. "Yura, what is it?"_

_That was his name. The name his brother called him. Something in Yuri seized on it, like a starving animal, and he hugged Makkachin as tightly as he could. "...I'm hungry," he muttered, every bit of him aching._

_Long, thin arms wrapped around him, and a floral scent wafted over him. It was familiar. Like a garden he would run through._

_It felt like a dream._

_"I'll get you some food, Yura," Victor said, his voice cheery. He drew back and quickly wiped his face, beaming at Yuri as if nothing were wrong, as though they lived in a palace rather than in this shack in the wilderness. His smile faded slightly, but it returned in full force as he asked, "Are you...are you feeling alright?"_

_"I'm hungry!"_

_Victor hesitated before nodding and turning to stir the fire._

_It was warmer already._

* * *

His mother was borderline unrecognizable when she got together with Queen Hiroko.

Well...at least that was Yuri's opinion. He hadn't _known_ her long enough to recognize her completely, or else didn't remember everything about her. He just knew that she smiled and laughed more with the alpha queen, especially when they were in the middle of sewing baby clothes of every size.

His father was off somewhere with Lady Minako discussing the state of affairs in Rutha and generally immersing himself into learning statecraft. Nothing terribly interesting, not when Yuri would have preferred to do some sparring with his father, now that Victor was out of commission and Yuuri was busy with Princess Zhilian's arrival. 

So for now, Yuri was on the training grounds, watching Nishigori and his fellows go through the forms, shouting in unison at certain times as their limbs easily moved in what appeared to be cumbersome armor. They were alphas and betas, mostly, but a handful were omegas, amazingly enough.

To think that some Ruthenian solider might one day meet his end at an omega's hand. The thought made Yuri smirk. 

On the other end were the Queen's samurai, their practice calling Yuri's attention as he made his way towards them. They moved with exquisite precision, and Yuri stared completely transfixed. Even here there were omegas, but each and every one of them had a grace that Yuri envied. Those who stood on the sidelines practiced with bamboo swords, and Yuri itched to grab one and join in.

He was strong. He was intelligent. He could match them all. He could even match the Katsudon in a fair fight, even if they hadn't technically had a real match yet. But the thought that he could best an alpha was intoxicating. Especially his brother's annoying mate.

And speaking of alphas:

Yuri recognized his bracing scent by now, but the sight of him was still a surprise. Particularly after finding certain things out about him. Otabek was a short distance away on the field, looking in the same direction as Yuri, his near-black eyes focused.

Yuri's first instinct was to tense up and glare at him, but he got those urges under control, as well as his hostile scent. Otabek had saved his father and made it possible for them all to reunite here. But it was difficult to...react to the quiet alpha, an alpha who could quickly blend into the background, make himself unnoticeable, but with enough power in his hands to snap a person's neck.

And respecting an alpha...It wasn't easy. The only alpha Yuri had ever respected, even _loved,_ before all of this was his grandfather, Yakov. Then there was the Queen, Nishigori, and his damn brother-in-law. But Otabek was...worthy of respect. Hell, he was fucking practical and spoke no nonsense. It honestly reminded Yuri of his mother, specifically her coolness.

He'd spoken to Otabek before, and so this entire line of thinking wasn't new. It did bother Yuri, especially when he wanted to...react like a normal person. Swallowing, Yuri strode over to Otabek's side and announced himself by asking boldly, "You're watching the samurai?"

To Otabek's credit, he didn't flinch. He turned to Yuri as if he already knew he was there. He didn't smile, but his gaze was unexpectedly calm as he looked at Yuri with a nod and a barely-perceptible smile. He turned back towards the samurai and said, "I think they're incredible. Strong, remarkable fighters. My father would have loved to see them in action, but the wars he fought never brought him to the East."

Yuri knew that Otabek's parents were both dead, and he felt only mildly guilty for thinking that at least Otabek had been lucky enough to form concrete memories of his parents before losing them in a relatively peaceful way. It wasn't something he was going to say aloud. Not when his parents were alive. Otabek was on his own until he'd found Yuri's father, and then became his...vassal? Bodyguard? "Have you ever had to do any actual soldiering?" Yuri asked, going over to sit a short distance away from the alpha, close enough to feel heat from him.

It was the strangest sensation, one that Yuri wasn't going to readily acknowledge. It was the tail-end of summer. Everything felt hot.

Ugh. So stupid.

Otabek shrugged in response. "I suppose I've more or less left that to your grandfather's men. My place is at his Highness's side, and by default yours." 

"Would you call yourself a mercenary, then?" Yuri asked, slightly annoyed by the insinuation that he needed protecting. He wasn't a _baby_ , no matter what his brother or his parents thought. If they wanted a baby to coddle they would wait another handful of months to do that to Victor and Yuuri's brat.

"I think I would," Otabek said, a little smirk lifting a corner of his mouth. "It may not sound so honorable, but the Emperor's vision certainly is."

It was...strange to hear his father referred to in that way. Yuri remembered worshiping his father as much as Victor did, but he had always known his father was a prince. The son of an emperor, their grandfather. Yet his father was usually always...Papa. Their guide and protector, just as much as their mother. With all his older brothers in front of him, he had no chance of becoming emperor. Then his entire family was murdered and suddenly he was, by right of blood, Emperor of Rutha, the greatest obstacle being the fact that he was an omega, and no alpha would ever accept him as emperor, no matter who his father was. "You're an alpha and you actually believe in him," Yuri couldn't help remarking, shaking his head in disbelief as he looked at Otabek.

The alpha's cheeks turned a faint shade of red, which shocked Yuri. "I'm...surprised it wasn't obvious."

"I mean, it is, but...I still don't expect it."

"Not from an alpha," Otabek concluded, clearing his throat as the color in his cheeks faded.

Yuri nodded, not feeling any guilt about _that_ at least. He had no reason to trust any other alpha than the ones closest to him. "...I never thought I'd see my father again, but assuming I did I wouldn't have thought an alpha would be the one to save him," he admitted, his throat growing tight when he remembered the moment of realization, when the truth came barreling back into his mind, filling those empty spaces in a convoluted mess that didn't even begin to make sense of until Victor began to answer his questions. They'd both been so sure that it was only the two of them left, and they'd been abandoned twice over by their parents. Weeks later that so-called truth was proven false, and they had their parents back.

Otabek frowned slightly in thought, looking at the sparring samurai again before saying, "He was in...an awful state when I found him. I thought he would die within a few hours, but he surprised me. He didn't know his name or why he was injured so badly, he just knew that he was in danger."

"...He really never mentioned me or my brother?" Yuri asked, wishing Otabek would tell him that he had.

"Not until he began to remember where he needed to go," Otabek said, to Yuri's dismay. "By then it was much too late and he couldn't reunite with you and Prince Victor."

Of course. How could they think otherwise? His father had been horribly injured and lucky to be alive, and Yuri had forgotten so much too. He couldn't blame his father for doing the same.

"May I ask you something, your Highness?" Otabek asked after a moment.

"Only if you stop with that "highness" crap. I renounced my claim, remember?"

"Very well then...Yuri. You lost your memory too, right?"

"For a while, yeah," Yuri replied, satisfied that Otabek wasn't going to act ridiculous about sticking to titles. But the question still shook him a little, because it felt like Otabek had been reading his mind. "Not because I was hurt, or anything, but...I don't really know why. I just know that after we were separated from our mother everything before that eventually turned into a blank. I just knew we had parents, and...they were dead. That's what Victor kept telling me, anyway, and I didn't care about finding more out, I just wanted to eat and not feel cold."

It was...the easiest way to explain it, especially when Yuri couldn't quiet understand it himself. He'd only spoken so frankly about his experience with his family, and that even included the Katsudon. 

"You needed to survive," Otabek said in a quiet voice.

"I guess," Yuri mumbled, still recalling those chaotic days when he just...stopped looking for their parents. Everything in him was focused on Victor and Makkachin and on getting rid of the gnawing hunger that became a priority. 

He bit his lip and focused on watching the samurai alongside Otabek, neither moving away or closer from the alpha. He had a good scent. Pleasant, even, and clean. The snap of bamboo swords filled the silence between them for several moments before Otabek turned to him again with a curious frown. "I know your brother fell in love with the prince, but how in the world did that come about? The queen had freed you both, and you could have gone anywhere you wanted."

"We didn't exactly _have_ anywhere to go," Yuri said, rolling his eyes as he recalled those strange days of new freedom. He'd decided to cut his hair off first thing, shocked when Victor didn't want to do the same. Now he understood, especially when he remembered what his mother's hair used to be like. Wavy and soft, like spun gold. Yuri was far too big to want to sink his fingers into the shoulder-length yellow hair, but he still remembered how it felt when he was small. "Our parents were dead and we had no clue where our grandfather was. And we were in a completely different country where we barely spoke the language. We were free but we were stuck."

His Nihan was still only passable nowadays, though he was able to communicate with the Nishigoris. Victor's Nihan was better than his Common, nowadays. He supposed it was something that happened when one took a lover who spoke the language..."As for my stupid brother falling in love, well...Let's just say he and my parents really do prove that love makes people do stupid things," Yuri muttered, bitterly recalling that morning when he went into his and Victor's room and found his brother in an embrace with Yuuri. He'd assumed the worst, and his brother had repaid him with a clear show of dominance right after. As if Yuri was supposed to know that the Katsudon hadn't done anything wrong.

"So then...Prince Victor pursued Prince Yuuri from the start?" Otabek asked.

"Not exactly," Yuri said with a wry look, thinking of that first night in the palace when he and his brother were trying to make sense of everything that had happened to them, being free after being prisoners for so long, after years of dreading sexual slavery and torture. "Victor threw himself at the Katsudon that first night to distract him from...from me," he recalled, his voice soft as he revealed the first event that had shocked him the most. "Yuuri freaked the fuck out and said that he didn't want that. He just wanted us to be alright. A fucking alpha." He shook his head and he could feel Otabek's eyes on him, and he felt his skin prickle at the sensation, more so when he remembered the terror of the moment when they realized the prince was at the door. "Victor never said anything afterwards, but...he hid in the bath for a long time, and I swear to God I heard him crying."

Victor looked drained and exhausted that night, and Yuri allowed himself to feel like a child again, safe and sound.

"...Your father always imagined the worst," Otabek said quietly, causing Yuri to lift his gaze towards him. Otabek looked back at him steadily, and added, "He never hid his tears, though. Not even from me."

"Victor just looks like him. He didn't take after him in everything," Yuri reflected with a wry look. After all, Victor hardly ever cried. Once Yuri thought that his brother just...never shed a tear. He wasn't ice or stone. He just never had a real reason to. Until that lonely shack, when Yuri heard him weeping. It made Yuri feel cold all of a sudden, and he bit back a shudder. "Come on," Yuri then said, getting to his feet as desperation suddenly raced through his limbs.

"Come...where?" Otabek asked, looking up at him with a raised eyebrow.

"You're the only one I haven't sparred with. I know where the practice swords are," Yuri clarified before aiming a smirk right at the alpha. "Or what, you're afraid an omega's going to beat your ass?"

A little smile appeared on Otabek's face, and it wasn't mocking at all. It wasn't patronizing either. "I wouldn't make the mistake of underestimating you, Yuri Leonidovich," the alpha said, standing up so he could follow Yuri to the slightly secluded spot he was heading towards.

The omega latched on to the sound of his name from Otabek's lips, feeling slightly more grounded in his identity. He wasn't a "prince" or a nameless former slave. He was Yuri.

What followed was quite possibly one of the most satisfying sparring sessions of Yuri's time in Niha.

It wasn't as though Victor and Yuuri held back on him. They knew he was strong, and Yuri respected the Katsudon more for it, so he usually got a good workout from kendo matches. Especially without armor. His parents would lament the bruises, but Yuri relished each ache.

He was also relishing the rapid snaps of each strike of his bamboo sword against Otabek's. The alpha soon got the hang of the movements and quickly countered, baring his teeth a little in a slight challenge to Yuri.

His scent was sharp in the air, and it goaded Yuri on, making him move quicker, striking harder as he realized just how much he'd missed this. Hell, he missed doing stuff like this with Yuuri, but the stupid knothead was too preoccupied nowadays.

This was refreshing. Even if it was with some alpha who wasn't his brother's mate. No, this alpha smelled different. Clean and powerful, and not in an overpowering way. It was something Yuri could tolerate. 

He knew he was goading the alpha the more the bamboo swords struck over and over again, and while Otabek had strength, he didn't have Yuri's endurance. The omega couldn't help snarling with pride as he kept pushing Otabek back with each strike, feeling more challenged and at home than he had in months.

* * *

Well that was bloody satisfying.

Yuri was a mess of bruises and sweat, but the pride burning in his belly was a potent balm, as well as the admiration in Otabek's eyes once a draw was declared after the alpha's strength returned, and he started to resist.

Yuri couldn't even be angry that it ended in a draw. The session had been thoroughly invigorating, and he didn't even care that his parents would gasp at the sight of his bruises. 

But preemptively bathing and getting rid of the sweat and grime from all that outdoor activity would earn him a reprieve from the scolding he was sure to get. Honestly, sometimes it felt like his parents were making up for lost time, and Victor, that idiot, was reveling in it.

Speaking of.

He was walking past the library when the strong, combined scent of flowers, cinnamon, and pheromones stopped him in his tracks, and a familiar dismay rose in his head as he heard two voices come through the _fucking wide open door?_

"...Now tell me what Princess Zhilian named her prize-winning poem from last year and maybe I'll be your side dish during the banquet."

"Are you trying to make me less nervous? Because it isn't working."

"I'm trying to make us both feel better about this charade."

Then there was stifled breathing, heavy and wet-sounding, and Yuri realized with horror what his stupid, _despicable_ brother was up to with the Katsudon-

"I hate this," Yuuri suddenly said in a ragged voice. "I hate...not knowing what's going to happen. Other than all this useless nonsense, I don't know anything about _who_ the princess is! And even if I did...for all she and the Regent know, our offer is genuine." 

Well...that was more interesting to listen to. Informative too.

"If she notices me, all she has to do is assume that you do have a concubine. It wouldn't be that unusual," Victor said casually.

"You're not my concubine," Yuuri said in a firmer tone. "Look at me. You're more than that." 

Ugh. That was much more awkward to hear.

The best thing was to just...back off.

And so that was what Yuri did, making sure he kept quiet and made his getaway as cleanly as possible.

Once he was in his room he shuddered in mortification before he went into the bath and started to tug his shirt off.

He paused with it over his head and gave it a sniff. Once out of shock and again with total disbelief.

No. No _fucking_ way.

...Fucking hell, Otabek had gotten close enough to scent him.

And then something happened that made Yuri want to jump off a cliff and into the ocean. He _blushed_ at the thought of it. Full-on felt his cheeks burn, spreading down the back of his neck and ending in a shiver that filled him with absolute dread.

What the fuck had happened?


	4. find another galaxy far from here, with more room to fly

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **TW: implied past child sexual abuse**
> 
> skip past the italics if you need to!

_The red-headed alpha had lifted Yuri up by the shoulder and punched him in the stomach, and he doubled over feeling like he would never breathe again._

_It still felt impossible to breathe as he lay bound and gagged with his brother right in front of him._

_Victor's wrists and feet were bound too but he wasn't gagged. He didn't need to be. He'd stopped screaming a long time ago after they'd dragged him off for an indeterminate amount of time. Yuri had heard him struggle while the stinking alphas laughed, and he'd screamed so much. Screamed until he was hoarse behind his gag, sounding like a wounded animal._

_"Don't go too far, lads. Antonov wants them to still be virgins when they get to the brothels."_

_They'd laughed and Yuri felt sick. Then he didn't hear Victor again for a long while until they dumped him next to Yuri like an old sack._

_There was a bloody cut on his lip, and his eyes were lifeless, staring somewhere into the darkness while Yuri desperately tried to get his attention. He wanted to know why. Why was this happening to them? Why had these alphas and betas burned their shack down?_

_Why were they hurting Victor?_

* * *

Yuri swore he had scrubbed off a layer of skin when he was in the scalding hot bath, pouring scented oil after scented oil all over himself from top to bottom. He scrubbed at his scalp with a familiar ferocity, just like all those other times when he'd been pawed in the brothel by presumptuous alphas who were quickly distracted by Christophe. 

His skin was going to be a burning red by the time he was done, but that time seemed a long way away because he could still smell Otabek on him.

And it wasn't...revolting.

Not like the alphas from the brothel, or the ones who had assaulted Victor the night they were found. No. No it was more like...Fuck, like _Yuuri's_. Pleasant and calming when the idiot wasn't his usual anxious self. His grandfather's as well. Mari-neechan's, Nishigori, Praskovya...And now Otabek's. 

It didn't sicken him. He...liked it.

But then why the fuck had Otabek even scented him in the first place?!

It was when Yuri was drying off and practically scoring his entire body that he remembered that _he_ had...Holy shit, he'd scented everything around him when they were whirling about the grounds, sparring. And that had to include Otabek.

Yuri's entire flesh BURNED at the realization, and his mind was abuzz with so much confusion. He dressed in clean clothing in the Nihan fashion, comfortable and familiar by now while eyeing the discarded pile of clothes that smelled of Otabek. He'd never thought to scent anyone out of...want or need or possessiveness. Only for the barest need for comfort, and it was something only done with his parents and brother. And Potya too, when she and the other kittens were fussy. It felt grounding to scent his possessions, and to share his scent with his family after getting them all back. 

But what did his instincts mean by scenting Otabek when he was so close? What Yuri felt towards him, was...admiration. That was easy to admit, at least, because Otabek was admirable. Strong and honorable, having saved a stray omega without asking for anything in return. And then he'd stayed at that omega's side, holding him up as the man who deserved the throne he was fighting for.

And. Fine. He was good-looking. Graceful and strong, just like the fucking Katsudon, but without all that neuroticism. That calm was one of the things that grounded Yuri during all of this...engagement nonsense, and the continued threats from the outside. And every thought that kept invading Yuri's mind as he continued putting together the pieces of the puzzle that made up his memories. Sorting out everything that came before the shack, and the night when he, Victor, and Makkachin were taken from their home and he never saw his mother again. No. Only her empty expression before...she took a blade to her wrists and tried her best to die.

Yuri shuddered and inhaled deeply, the combined scents of his parents and Otabek pushing some semblance of calm into his mind. It was like Victor scenting him, distracting him from the violence around them. Keeping him from remembering the worst parts of the past decade. That was welcome, wanted. And for some reason so was that bracing scent of eucalyptus that had caught him by surprise and helped him feel balanced. Like it quelled the fury that burned in his heart.

Ugh. He was thinking like an alpha sniffing out an omega. That wasn't him. He was an omega, he was...

"Peh," he scoffed, mostly at himself for being such an idiot. He wasn't a simpering omega either who would pleasure and comfort any alpha who dared to try and get between his legs. He was a fighter. A survivor. Spitting back every idiot alpha's expectations right back in their faces. Maybe that was why he'd gone and scented Otabek and just...didn't react when Otabek scented him in turn. Neither of them had reacted. 

Not until Yuri had gotten here and realized what he smelled like. Otabek's scent was still on him, though not as strongly as before. It might have looked like...like he'd gone at it with the alpha like Victor did with the Katsudon. His throat tightened imagining it, his face burning even more. 

What was he supposed to do with those clothes anyway? Burning them would be a waste, but he didn't want his parents knowing anything about this. 

...Fuck his entire life.

He hurriedly gathered the discarded clothes and shoved them into the drawer where he kept...Shit, he hadn't thought about this, but he'd thrown them among everything he used for his heat.

Shit.

Whatever. What _ever_ , the first thing he needed to do after dealing with this crap was...ugh, he needed to talk to _Victor_ , because he wasn't going to say anything to his parents. Stupid Victor would probably know what to do. 

He stalked out of the room and through the hallways _again_ , shooting venomous glares at any servant who so much as looked his way. It was extremely satisfying when a few of them flinched back and looked away from him. He wasn't going to waste time being polite to anyone, not when he had to go hunt down his brother and potentially live through a humiliating moment that was probably going to heavily feature the stupid Katsudon now that those two were glued by the baby bump. Outstanding.

The first place he thought of to look for them in was the library, even though it wasn't all that likely that they were still in there. 

A wall of pheromones hit Yuri right in the face as soon as he got within five feet of the library doors and he growled in irritation. He had no patience for this nonsense, so he kicked the doors open and roared loud enough that he wanted to make sure the entire palace shook, _"PUT HIS DICK AWAY BECAUSE I'VE GOT A FUCKING PROBLEM!"_

Face red, he marched inside and saw to his immediate relief that both Victor and Yuuri were dressed, but their positions left much to be desired. Victor was perched right on the Katsudon's lap, legs on either side of his waist, with the prince's hand right up the back of Victor's shirt. They were both gaping at Yuri, Victor's expression toeing the line between surprise and icy fury. One of his hands was buried in the Katsudon's untidy hair, the prince's face half-hidden in Victor's neck as one eye stared at Yuri as his entire face turned red as a cherry.

Yuri wanted the earth to swallow him up. Victor had spoken to him as candidly as possible about the..."pleasures" that an alpha and omega could share without actually putting on a live demonstration, so he knew his brother was...ugh, _happy_. Happy as a clam and purring up a storm, even now when he was already dragging around that baby bump that still had a ways to grow.

Victor's eyes narrowed with impatience and he lifted off of Yuuri's lap with a soft growl, his scent overpowering even the alpha's as he adjusted his clothes and crossed his arms across his chest while Yuuri's face turned a deeper red and he frantically tugged his tunic over his lap like he was hiding a--oh _no_.

Yuri took a step back but Victor was right in front of him, taller and very dangerous-smelling. "I hope you have a very good reason for barging in and interrupting so rudely, Yurio," he said quietly with a very disarming smile.

Yuri bit his lip and faced his brother, squaring his shoulders and trying to look past Victor's hormonal behavior and his show of dominance. "I've got a problem and I need to talk to you," he replied firmly, jaw squared even as his face continued to burn. He wasn't about to shrink back or turn away now, not when Victor was the only one he completely trusted, no matter how stupid he was. 

Something must have shown in his eyes because the icy expression on Victor's face softened considerably, and he frowned with concern as he pulled his scent back.

Yuuri, looking between them both and appearing less frazzled than he had moments before, asked hurriedly, "Do you want me to leave...?"

"No, you might as well stay," Yuri muttered, feeling no less embarrassed than his brother-in-law obviously was. But Yuuri was an alpha, so maybe he could make sense of all this with Victor.

"Did something happen?" his brother asked, voice gentler than it was before.

The scents around him were less intense than before, and Yuri hesitated just slightly before sighing heavily and saying, "Smell me."

Victor frowned and exchanged a look with Yuuri, who looked just as surprised as he stood and came closer to Yuri, who felt self-conscious. And he hated feeling that way. Victor leaned in with a few careful sniffs. "Are you in heat, or--" He cut himself off with a sharp inhale, his eyes zeroing in on Yuri with sharp focus.

Yuuri looked just as shocked, quietly exclaiming, "That's...that's an alpha's..."

An alpha's scent. He could tell immediately.

Yuri wanted to shrink but that immediately became impossible when Victor grabbed him by the shoulders and growled with unfamiliar ferocity, " _Who?"_

Oh. Okay, fuck. Victor was strong. Very strong if he was almost lifting Yuri off the floor with his grip. But Yuri realized he was wrong; that ferocity wasn't unfamiliar. Victor had only ever gotten like this when it looked like Yuri was in danger. Even so, Yuri wasn't in danger _now_ , and he wasn't going to listen if he was going to try and break Yuri in half before hunting Otabek down and doing the same to him. "Stop fucking hissing at me and let-- _FUCK YOU, THAT HURTS!"_

"Victor, easy! You're hurting him!" Yuuri exclaimed, looking torn between wanting answers and looking for a way to separate Victor from Yuri.

Victor did loosen his grip, but his expression was still stormy as he breathed in Yuri's mixed-up scent and hissed, "...That's Otabek's scent. How _dare he--"_

"We were sparring!" Yuri interrupted with a glare, certain that if he didn't get a word in edgewise his pregnant brother was going to murder Otabek and hang his head from the gates of Hasetsu. "We were sparring outside, in front of dozens of samurai and guards. We got into it and...I was...scenting everything." 

They were staring at him and Yuri wanted to die. Or smash both their faces. This was mortifying and he couldn't even _explain_ himself. How would he even begin to, especially when Victor and Yuuri were quick to assume anything!? 

"You must have done it accidentally then," Victor observed, still looking worried as he looked right at Yuri. "Yuuri has too."

"I-It wasn't on purpose!"

"Exactly!" Yuri exclaimed, dragging a hand through his hair with annoyed desperation. What answers was he supposed to find when Victor and Yuuri seemingly had none? "Fuck... _Fuck..."_

"Yuri, where is Otabek now?" Victor asked.

"Don't fucking hunt him down!"

"I'm not an animal, Yura. I just want to know where he went."

"Probably to...take a bath or something? That's what I did." Crap, now he wondered what Otabek had thought when he too realized what Yuri had done. God, how was he supposed to _face_ Otabek? Even if...if Yuri would ever admit anything to him, to himself, to his own fucking thoughts, it wasn't...This wasn't how Yuri would have imagined things going! He admired Otabek, of course, but...he never imagined that far into the future. Not even when he and Victor spoke all those weeks ago. It was like his mind froze up on that usual, calm expression that Otabek wore, and the soft dark of his eyes when he looked at Yuri.

He'd blushed under that gaze more than once, and it had been hard acknowledging those events. He never spoke of them. Not even to Victor, no matter how much he confided in him because he just _knew_ he was going to be stupid about it. He'd read into each blush as though Yuri were already admitting something when Yuri himself _didn't_ know why he would react towards Otabek in that way. Admiration, maybe, respect...But how could he explain the pride he felt when Otabek expressed admiration in _him?_

"...Is this why you asked me about what being an with an alpha was like?" Victor suddenly asked, realization dawning on his face as dread filled Yuri's heart. "Do you have feelings for Otabek?"

Oh fuck him. Fuck him and his stupid romantic self for saying it out loud. Yuri would have throttled him if he weren't knocked up. 

Fortunately, for once, the Katsudon quickly interrupted, "Hang on, Victor. They've been really friendly as of late. It could...just be that. We shouldn't jump to conclusions."

Victor shrugged at Yuuri, stubbornly replying, "Best friends make the best mates."

"You're out of your goddamn mind," Yuri muttered, the back of his neck burning as he tried to rationalize the scrambled thoughts whirling through his mind. He knew he wasn't going to be able to explain that _yes_ , he would readily consider Otabek a friend at least, but beyond that...He scented his brother, his parents, his damn cat. He'd probably scent the baby if Victor let him. "I...He's... _fine_ , I guess! He's not batshit insane, and he's fun to be around..."

"You're describing him so adorably, Yura!" Victor said with a smirk, going from righteously protective to patronizing.

Yuri rolled his eyes and turned his focus on his brother-in-law. "Can it really happen accidentally?" he demanded.

"Um...Yes?" Yuuri replied pathetically. "I just...whenever I did it, it was when...I felt a strong emotion towards Victor, I guess." He was blushing again, but also smiling as he turned his doe-eyed gaze to Victor. "When I...admire him, and want to protect him. When I want...everyone to know that he..."

"That I belong to you," Victor finished for him, returning Yuuri's look with something invisible passing between them, like it always did when they gawked at each other that way. Yuri tapped his foot impatiently until Victor looked at him again and said, "You said you were sparring. What did you _feel_ , Yura?"

"...Respect, I guess. Happy that we were doing something together, and that he gave me a fair match." It had made Yuri feel happy. Valued and respected. Especially when Otabek looked at him with neither lust nor violent intentions. "We talked too, and...I kept thinking the same thing as always; he's one fucking strange alpha, and I like him for it."

He liked it. He liked Otabek. Liked spending time with him, being seen as an equal.

He felt Victor looking at him, and he felt hotter than ever. He peered up at Victor, who was smiling at him gently, like all those times when he sensed Yuri was afraid and would take him into his arms to keep scenting him. "The only other people to ever scent us like that were our parents. Both of them were omegas. An alpha's scenting is...definitely different." He then closed his eyes and reached back to take Yuuri's hand and squeeze it. "When I scent Yuuri, I feel such deep love and pride. We become a part of each other so deeply, and it's like your flesh remembers how that feels."

"...What the _barreling fuck_ are you talking about?" Yuri asked, irritated by all that nonsense. 

Then there was that stupid, knowing look the two of them exchanged before his brother shook his head. "Oh, Yura...Go speak to Otabek. He's probably realized he's covered in your scent too." Then he reached up and took Yuri's face in his hands, one reaching up to gently tidy his disheveled hair. "You're my Yura. My _tigr._ We both know you can defend yourself, but now you have an entire family at your back too."

"You don't have to move too fast either," Yuuri added, smiling at Yuri encouragingly. "After all, you haven't known him very long...so now would be a good chance to slow things down and get to know each other."

"I didn't even know I was going so fucking fast. I don't even know if I _want_ a mate," Yuri muttered, allowing his brother to run his fingers through his hair. 

"And it's certainly not something you'd want to discuss with Otabek now," Yuuri replied. "He may not feel ready, Victor."

"I'm not some delicate omega, Katsudon. I can take care of myself."

"So then what will you do, Yura? Will you talk to him?" Victor asked, incredibly relentless. 

"...I don't know."

"Come here," Victor said before wrapping his arms around Yuri, meeting very little resistance. Yuri rested his head on Victor's shoulder, the swell of his brother's belly caught between them both. It was...very new and strange, but the comfort was familiar and very welcome. "Do you want me to speak to our parents?"

"No," Yuri mumbled, feeling a bit pathetic. "No, I...I'll deal with...whatever this is myself. You've got that princess to worry about, right?"

"I can worry about you too," Victor said quietly, his scent wrapping around Yuri like a familiar and beloved blanket. Of course Yuri wasn't going to admit it out loud. But he hadn't realized just how much he'd missed _this_ , even if it now included the faint scent of cinnamon at the back of his tongue. But that was just as soothing.

* * *

Yuri was a coward. He hated to admit it, but he was the biggest coward he knew. And he hated cowards.

But what else could he call himself when he'd been moving heaven and earth to avoid the Kazian alpha? 

No, he wasn't afraid of Otabek. Quite the opposite. But he wasn't about to go and confront him over...whatever the two of them were feeling. So for the past few days Yuri sort of made up for lost time and glued himself to Victor and his mother, enduring all the briefings on Xi'anese culture and the incoming princess and the long evenings when his and Yuuri's mothers would swap stories about their children's boyhoods, subjecting Yuri to a newfound form of embarrassment that he was never going to get over. 

And as the days passed he couldn't get over the feeling that Otabek was hunting him down. Well...not so blatantly. He was still loyally remaining at Yuri's father's side when he wasn't trying to talk to Yuri, so that made matters a bit easier.

Only a little bit. Yuri couldn't quite run away from his most stubborn, invasive thoughts, the ones that sounded too much like Victor's smug voice. Much less now even when all these days had passed since the incident and Yuri hadn't taken the time to spar. So he had energy that had been wasted on fetching needles and thread for his mother and getting quizzed alongside the Katsudon. 

He was trying very hard not to bounce on his heels as he stood in the courtyard alongside the rest of the court, awaiting the arrival of the Xi'anese guests, which was made up of the Princess's immediate household. They had already landed at port and were on their way. It was a far cry from his and Victor's arrival in the dark of night. This was the proper welcome for a royal bride, not for two slaves.

He stood a few feet away from his family, who stood apart from the courtiers. They weren't the most inconspicuous group, but it was enough to keep somewhat out of sight from the Princess. Victor was...apparently alright with all of this nonsense, but their parents stayed beside him, their mother evidently doing everything she could to distract him by talking about the baby, the plans for its wardrobe, the latest word from their grandfather...

Yuri had no great love for royals, even if he happened to be one. The only ones who got a pass from him were the Katsukis. But they really had no clue who this princess was or how she would react to being a smokescreen for Antonov, even if it meant it would make things easier for the regent in Xi'an.

That sharp scent knocked all other thoughts out of Yuri's head, and he realized he'd been standing still for far too long. Stupid. _Stupid_. His father was here too, so of course Otabek was going to shadow him even today. Face heating up, Yuri kept his face forward as a commotion at the gates caught everyone's attention. Every member of the royal family was dressed in their best, even Yuuri's father, who looked more alert than Yuri had ever seen him. Yuuri himself looked pretty memorable in his deep blue robes, though it looked...wrong to not see Victor at his side.

Yuri suddenly wanted to run over to his brother, to see if the idiot was holding up fine. Right now their mother had her hand on his shoulder, and he stood close to her with stiff shoulders. Yuri was glued to the spot when he sensed Otabek right next to him, and smelled the nerves in his scent as he quietly said, "Prince Yuri-"

"Don't call me that," Yuri hissed, his heart going out of control in less than a second. And Otabek's stupid scent was making a mess of his head. It was more than pleasant. Yuri _liked_ it, liked that it was so familiar and that before now it had done a good job of keeping him grounded.

He heard Otabek swallow before he said in a hushed voice, "I didn't do it on purpose, Yuri." Well that was a relief at least, to not hear Otabek calling him a prince. For all his emotional turmoil, Yuri didn't want to put that distance between them, even though he'd done his damndest to put it on himself. "I know you didn't do it on purpose either. Right?"

Yuri's blush intensified as he watched riders make their way through their gates, preceding a short line of three carriages that rolled in with a clamor. "...I didn't even realize I was doing it," he admitted through gritted teeth, watching Victor turn towards Yuuri, though his expression wasn't visible. 

"...I...I supposed you didn't," Otabek said. "I'm still sorry for causing you distress. It's the last thing I want to do."

"Because I'm your Emperor's son?" Yuri asked, turning to glare at Otabek sharply.

Ugh. That was a mistake because Otabek just met his gaze with his own dark one, his eyes betraying more emotion than they ever had. Concern. Something else that Yuri didn't quite know. "...Because I wouldn't willfully do such a thing without your permission."

Yuri could only stare at the alpha, feeling more confused than ever. And his stupid heart was beating faster still, while at the same time his first instinct was to hiss at the alpha, to challenge him and have his challenge readily met, like always.

This was the absolute worst.

Yuri stubbornly faced forward and saw the carriage door open, a young woman emerging. Yuri had no clue what he'd expected, but the Princess wasn't...quite that. She was definitely about Yuuri's age, and her hair was done up in a coiled braid that was thrown over her shoulder, her sky-blue robes looking more comfortable than formal. Her flushed face looked pleased by everything and everyone she saw in the courtyard, her wide smile overwhelmingly bright.

The Katsudon appeared to hesitate before Mari took mercy on him and stepped forward, looking decorated yet casual with her rosy robes as she bowed to the princess in greeting. "Welcome to the Kingdom of Hasetsu, Princess Zhilian."

The younger woman smiled and bowed with easy grace that definitely reminded Yuri of a dancer. Of course she was, Victor had quizzed them on that enough times. "Where's my future husband?" she then asked, still grinning as she looked around towards the courtiers.

Yuri watched Victor's shoulders twitch at those clear, ringing words, and he also saw Yuuri hesitate again before he finally stepped forward, shoulders squared and expression quite obviously nervous before he bowed to the princess and stood about two feet away from her. "Princess Zhilian. It's...good to finally meet you. I'm Prince Katsuki Yuuri. Welcome to Castle Hasetsu."

Princess Zhilian's smile widened as she looked Yuuri over with...Shit. Approval. Appreciation, maybe. Yuri almost wanted to jump in and tell her, "No chance, your Highness, he's taken." But he stayed put and just...let the Princess examine his brother-in-law before she said with a giggle, "You're even more adorable than I expected, Prince Yuuri! I think I'll enjoy twisting Antonov's nose with this false engagement so much more than I thought!"

There was a sharp inhale throughout the courtyard, but Victor's was the one that Yuri noticed the most. Yuri's gaze was glued to the Princess, though, and the knowing look in her dark eyes as she looked at Yuuri and Mari as though they'd made her year.

"Uh...Princess?" Yuuri asked uncertainly, cheeks tinged with pink as he stared at her.

"Codes are my favorite hobby, Prince Yuuri," she said with a smirk before looking up at Princess Mari, quite obviously pleased. "Lady Minako's and Princess Mari's was a challenge, but I was able to get at the meaning after a bit of thinking."

Shit. Princess Zhilian had a lot of hobbies. Code-breaking wasn't mentioned. Mari was smirking too, nodding approvingly at the foreign princess and saying, "As I hoped you would. Lady Minako says politics is a theater, one that looks best when every performer's on the right page. Don't you think, Yuuri?"

Yuuri looked totally flabbergasted before exhaling with visible relief, his cheeks still very pink as he glanced over towards Victor.

Yuri finally moved over to his brother's side, and Victor was staring at the scene in front of them with absolute attention. His hand was on his stomach as he watched everything, his scent betraying his own calm even as he breathed shakily.

"This is incredible," Yuri heard his father murmur in Ruthenian.

He couldn't help but hiss in shock, "Just what the hell is all of this?"

His father turned to him and answered almost helpfully, "It's as Lady Minako said; a wonderful performance for Antonov's benefit."

"And she's a good actress," Victor said, smiling for the first time in hours.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please comment!!!


	5. just leave me your wake to remember you by

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **TW: IMPLIED SEXUAL ASSAULT**
> 
> Evening, all!
> 
> WIPs are still chugging on, I've just been overwhelmed at my job and coping with it.
> 
> Thank you all for reading and keeping up with the series. Thank you for commenting too!

_There was no distracting Yuri on nights like these, when Victor sent him away and the brothel betas marched him out of their chamber and left Victor alone. By now Yuri understood that the betas weren't doing it because Victor ordered it. No, Yuri could see the Madam's hand in this, in separating Yuri from his brother, and he could tell that on nights like these Victor wasn't going to complain about Yuri's absence._

_Yuri wasn't made to entertain clients. Nowadays he was still in his "apprenticeship," learning dance, music, and conversation. It was one of the more palatable parts of residing in a brothel, even though it only meant that Yuri was one day supposed to be some alpha's entertaining plaything, and not one of the dozens of whores meant to service client after client._

_The Nihan lessons were a surprise, starting a year back and continuing to this day. By now Victor was practically teaching Yuri all by himself, and it was almost...fun to have a secret language between the two of them, even if Yuri had only a passing fluency in it. Neither of them had any clue why the Madam had suddenly decided it was important for them to learn the language, especially when Yuri could barely read a word in Ruthenian. Yuri supposed there had to be some stupid and important Nihan client who wanted their omegas to communicate and make sense._

_Yuri didn't care about those lessons now, not when he had no clue why Victor was fine with him being sent away, and why he'd looked so totally miserable before Yuri left him._

_He was nearing the end of the long hall, where the door was with those two beta brutes stood guard. Yuri glared at them, not caring for their threatening glares. No one was going to keep him from his brother._

_The door opened with a bang that echoed, and Yuri froze where he stood as a tall, slate-haired and hatchet-faced alpha emerged from the room Victor was supposed to be in. The expression on his face was pure, hard fury, though he also looked flushed, like he'd exerted himself..._

_No._

_No, fuck, it couldn't be. Where was Victor?_

_If this bastard alpha touched Victor, Yuri would kill him. Even if it meant he'd probably die too. The Madam had always made it clear that his and Victor's virginity made them valuable, so she wouldn't hand them over to just any alpha. Did this one meet her price? Was that why Yuri had to be dragged out of the room earlier?_

_This miserable, fucking son of a bitch stank of burning wood, making Yuri feel suffocated and rooting him to the spot even when he wanted so badly to rush over and kill this man for raping his brother. Every inch of him screamed for the man's blood, and every instinct wanted him to leap forward and sink his teeth and nails into the alpha's throat and eyes._

_An instant too late, Yuri realized he was pushing his scent forward, to clash against the alpha's. He couldn't move but neither could he draw his scent back, too enraged to do anything else except fight in the only way he could._

_Dull blue eyes flashed and lifted up to Yuri's face, nostrils flaring with murderous anger that Yuri wanted to hiss against. But the alpha didn't move to strike him. No, he just kept his scent burning steadily, and so infuriatingly strong, as he closed the distance between them._

_No, the alpha's glare became a sneer as his eyes moved over Yuri's body in a nauseating way. "You're Victor's little brother. Yuri."_

_His voice was no different than the rest of him; hard and cold. Meant to be terrifying. Yuri had never been a coward, not even when Victor did everything in his power to keep Yuri from seeing the evil around them. He could be as brave as his brother, and he was going to keep staring this alpha fuck down until he had a chance to kill him in the fastest, most painful way possible._

_But this alpha knew his name. Why would he know his name? It made Yuri hesitate for an instant, and it was enough for the alpha's scent to overwhelm him momentarily. But he didn't stand down, as confused as he was."Yeah, and who the fuck are you?"_

_That made the alpha's eyes grow icier still, and he growled threateningly, "Watch your tone, you little whore. You should be more like your pathetic brother and know your place. That will do you a world of good in the future."_

_With that the alpha roughly shouldered past Yuri, who just barely kept his balance. He stared after the alpha's broad back, heart pounding as a million questions went through his head._

_And the only one with answers was in that room._

_With a low hiss, Yuri rushed towards the chamber, suddenly frantic. He ignored the betas who were beginning to step away from the door and went in, afraid of what he'd find._

_Victor stood before the nightstand, head bent over the white bowl, his hair disheveled. His fingers clutched the handle of the water pitcher hard enough that his knuckles were white._

_The door shut behind Yuri, and the noise made Victor look up with a shiver. He looked...terrified. And there was a cut on his lip that was swelling quickly._

_Yuri stared. Understanding and yet not understanding. All the fury that had burned inside him felt like an oppressive heat without any sort of relief, and all he could do was ask, "What the hell happened? Why was he in here?"_

_Victor blinked quickly, running a hand through his hair and gingerly touching his bruised lip with the fingers of his other hand, taking a step back away from Yuri. "I'm alright. Nothing happened," he said flatly, his skin paler than usual._

_"Bullshit! It reeks like that alpha in here!"_

_"Please stop shouting, Yura." Victor didn't have to shout to silence Yuri. No, he said it in that same, flat tone as he looked anywhere but Yuri's face, fingers shaking as he touched the cut and drew them back, finding blood on them. His eyes, lacking their usual light, barely reacted at the sight of blood on his fingertips. He kept staring into empty space before turning away and picking up a towel to wash his hands. Yuri watched him for several moments, nervous and outraged, as his older brother pressed a corner of the wet towel to his lip. He flinched then, and Yuri had a horrifying vision back to being caned for what felt like an eternity, bruises covering his body and throbbing painfully, leaving him unable to move until Victor finally came to him._

_Victor took several deep breaths while Yuri stood rooted to the spot, sensing the walls that his brother was putting up, evidenced by the stony expression of his face. It was...different from the dead look on his face that horrible night when they were taken from the shack, and it was as though Victor couldn't even_ see _him. He turned around and faced Yuri, wearing an empty smile as he said,_ _"I told you before, we're more valuable to them as untouched omegas. Not even...that man would do anything to risk his plans for us."_

_"What plans?" Yuri had no clue what he was talking about. They were both desirable omegas, worth a fortune even after being deflowered. Omegas were rounded up just as they had been all the time, especially the most vulnerable ones. Hiding in the wilderness hadn't served them well. And yet...Yuri had no clue why they'd been hiding in the first place. Victor said that they'd always been there, but...Yuri just didn't know. And he didn't understand why Victor would speak of some stinking alpha's plans for them._

_"Haven't you ever wondered why we were supposed to learn Nihan?" Victor asked, taking slow steps towards their bed and sitting on the edge, still staring at nothing while Yuri tried to figure out how to answer his question. He'd been ruminating on that very topic just minutes ago, thinking that it was something to make them more...attractive. Valuable to whatever rich Nihan alpha wanted them to decorate their harem._

_Yuri had no answer. None that he could give Victor, who had always known...more. Everything. He always had the answers, though he didn't five them freely. No matter how much Yuri raged and rebelled. Victor looked Yuri in the eye for the first time in what felt like hours, and said with finality, "...They're taking us to the kingdom called Hasetsu in the next week. That man said...we're to be given as gifts to the royal family."_

_Hasetsu. In Niha. Across the sea. Yuri stared at Victor for several moments, wondering if he'd heard wrong. "...What?!" Plans. Plans Yuri didn't understand. They'd been here for years, years that made up the majority of Yuri's memories. He'd...wanted to escape. He'd wanted to run after Christophe and his rich alpha despite Victor's stupid and reasonable protests. He wanted to be free, to live his life the way he wanted, and he wanted the same for his brother, his only family, the only one in the world who gave a damn about him, who kept protecting him over and over..._

_But this. This was just a journey to another prison. Another cage. And now...there were alphas involved. They were going to belong to alphas, be their slaves, their...Some_ things _to be used..._

_Victor nodded again, steadily gazing at Yuri with tired eyes. "There is a princess. And a prince. We're to enter their harem."_

_Royalty. They were going to belong to a fucking prince and princess. "...Slaves? Harem slaves?" Yuri spat out in disbelief, his nerves on fire._

_Victor looked so fucking calm, as though this were a simple matter of the weather taking a sudden turn. As if this news were_ good _. He let out a soft, bitter laugh, his lip already turning a deep purple._ _"...I used to dream that one day I'd meet a dashing prince and become his mate...And now my dream is going to come true, Yura."_

_"Shut up," Yuri growled, staring at Victor in disbelief, at the...acceptance that radiated from his body. He hated it. He hated Victor right now for giving in. He hated that their room was drenched in that alpha's scent. He hated that he knew_ nothing _, that he too was expected to just endure everything that was done to him. The beatings, the molestation, the wretched heats that drew alphas to them. And now they were being sent across the entire fucking country and then to an island to be given to fucking royalty, like trade goods. Yuri balled up his fists, his nails digging into his palms as he walked towards Victor as anger burned in his throat._ _"Shut up, I know you don't want that! Not like this!" He wasn't stupid, no matter how ignorant Victor wanted him to be. He knew when his brother was afraid, even when he acted brave. He saw the haunted look in his eyes when he had to entertain an alpha, and even watch one rape another brothel omega. When it would happen to Christophe, Victor would still pick him up and soothe his pain, even if he too looked as wretched as the golden-eyed omega. Yuri finally went to his brother and gripped him by the shoulders, looking right into his eyes and saying, "We have to get out of here. We're not going to fucking Niha and we're not staying in this shithole. We'll run just like Christophe did!"_

_"Christophe didn't run. He was bought and freed, Yura," Victor said calmly, his stare flat._

_"We can't just let them take us to some fucking harem! Do you want us to be slaves for the rest of our lives? Some alpha's fuck toys?"_

_Something then finally flared in Victor's eyes, like a sudden burst of flame that singed through, betraying a moment of absolute agony in Victor's expression that told Yuri that his words had their effect, painful as it was. But then a rare fury took the agony's place, and Victor's scent overpowered Yuri's like a tidal wave as he shouted, "Stop, Yuri!"_

_Yuri froze. It was both instinct and...shame. At his outburst. At his lack of control, at his anger at his brother. And at times like these, when Victor asserted his dominance, he seemed as daunting as any alpha, more so than the alpha Yuri had confronted. Victor's eyes were hard as steel as he took Yuri's face in his hands, his scent turning to something calming, like a blanket wrapping around Yuri. He didn't look away, not when Victor's eyes and touch were the only thing keeping him grounded, quieting the rage in his mind._

_Victor's voice was softer as he ordered, "Be quiet and listen to me. We can't run away. Not now, not without money and not when we're--" He cut himself off rather suddenly, agony flashing across his eyes again, and then he frowned and added bitterly, "Not when they'll start looking for us the moment they notice we're gone. Not when the Madam will send a hundred men to drag us back here before we can even leave the city. I can't stop them from putting us on a boat and taking us to that harem, but I swear on my life that I'm going to do everything I can to protect you. I won't let anyone touch you._ _"_

_Whatever questions Yuri had, he was certain of one thing; Victor was always going to protect him. He was always going to be with him._

* * *

Yuri hated diplomacy. He had minimal experience with it and he hated it so very deeply.

All this talk of stages and actors, meanwhile everyone drifted between speaking bluntly or hiding behind pretty words that sounded like they were out of those stupid books Victor made him read. Then there were the vague statements his parents made about court language, the intricacies of politics and the way alphas comported themselves. 

In the case of the Nihan and X'ianese courts, the alpha factor didn't appear to matter much, which apparently fascinated his parents. When he thought about it, it made sense that they would be fascinated; here they were witnessing something that had been impossible in the Ruthenian court. Alphas, omegas, and betas interacting with nothing but their titles to differentiate between them. Princess Zhilian, an omega who smelled like peaches and a distinctly pretty face, was talking animatedly as she sat between Mari and the Katsudon at the table, the Prince nodding quietly at everything she said while Mari gazed at her with a rare fascination.

The Queen and Lady Minako were looking on in between chatting with the Xi'anese courtiers, their conversation carrying a more serious edge based on what Yuri overheard, and he was suddenly glad he'd learned Nihan as well as he had. He gathered that the Emperor and Prince Regent held nothing but contempt for Antonov, refusing to recognize his claim and condemning his encroachments into Xi'anese lands. 

So this false marriage came like a gift on a silver platter. And the Princess was all-too willing to go along with it. In fact she seemed to be enjoying it, happily oblivious to the furtive glances Yuuri kept sending Victor's way. No, the princess seemed to be entertaining her Nihan counterpart much more, Mari's laugh ringing along with hers every now and then.

Victor sat next to Yuri, eating sparingly while returning Yuuri's glances meaningfully. The Princess and her retinue had it very clear that Yuuri was already mated, and to Victor...who happened to be the son of Rutha's rightful emperor, who happened to be sitting at Queen Hiroko's table. 

It was certainly a development that Princess Zhilian wasn't expecting, and her expression of glee at the revelation was certainly something to behold, though Yuri was anxious the entire time.

His family smelled just as nervous, though Victor was better at concealing it as he steadfastly attached himself to Yuuri's side for as long as he could, the Princess greeting him with unabashed delight. That alone had Victor beaming at her, a far cry from his apprehension in the past few weeks. Not only that, but the Princess had looked overjoyed at Victor's very obvious pregnancy, happily declaring that Antonov was utterly doomed.

Allies. Yuri's father and mother had the Princess's reassurances--and that of her entire retinue--that the Emperor and Prince Regent would commit to supporting Leonid Iosifevich's claim to the Ruthenian throne. 

It had all happened so quickly, making Yuri's head spin. All of the theatrics, rather than straightforward action. But everyone around him insisted it would all serve to effectively corner Antonov and keep Yuuri and Mari from having to consider the man's proposal on his daughters' behalf.

After all, his mother explained, Antonov would never accept that any child of his be made a concubine. Not even an omega child.

It bought time in some manner. Took more time in others. By now Yuri knew Antonov wasn't a man who would take ridicule lightly. He'd made them all suffer for ten years, killing his father's family and kidnapping Yuri and Victor to make use of them in whatever way he saw fit.

And while all of that was going on, Yuri was dealing with the aftermath of being scented by and _scenting_ an alpha.

Otabek in particular.

He still didn't know what exactly to think about that. Not now. He was much too confused to figure out why he and Otabek had gone and scented each other, because it didn't feel platonic. It didn't feel...romantic either. Not in the way Victor usually peddled that shit. All the affectionate crap and hand-holding, getting to the point where they forgot the rest of the world still existed. 

That wasn't necessarily the case all the time. Victor was all-too aware of the world around them right now, extending beyond Niha's shores to the Xi'anese and Sillan courts, to wherever Antonov waited and plotted, throwing his own children into the line of fire. He sat and watched Yuuri and the Princess, observant as a cat while anxiety spiked in his scent. 

"Prince Victor!"

The Princess's call rang out clear as a bell in the banquet hall, drawing everyone's attention almost immediately. Especially the four Ruthenians present.

Yuri smelled the spike of nervousness in his parents' scents, and he himself felt an unexpected rush spark through his spine at the sound of sound of his brother being addressed by his true title. By a member of another dynasty in conflict with Antonov. It was fucking ballsy, so to speak, and when Yuri turned to look at his brother's reaction, that rush only intensified.

Victor looked like he was already used to being addressed in that fashion, smiling in a way that was both friendly and diplomatic as he looked back at the woman his mate was "courting." Victor wasn't dressed like a mere courtier. His attire was Nihan, but on par with Yuuri's, his hakama a dark silver that complimented his hair, thin plaits swooping back towards the back of his head and keeping his face visible. "Yes, your Highness?" he replied just as clearly while their parents looked on anxiously. When Yuri looked at his mother, she looked as though she wanted nothing more than to seize them both and run, staying close to them this time.

Princess Zhilian gazed at him steadily and smiled widely before beckoning him over with a quick tilt of her head. "Come and sit next to your husband. I'd like us all to speak without having to shout across the banquet hall."

Yuuri's face was pink the entire time, looking between the princess and Victor like he too was up in the air. It was one of those rare times where Yuri felt along the same lines as the alpha. But Victor, unflappable, returned the princess's smile, a spark in his eye betraying his daring and happiness. "Gladly," he said, and then he glanced at Yuri with a cheeky wink before making his way over to them.

"This is going...better than expected," Yuri's father murmured as they kept their eyes on Victor, seeing him move confidently and sit beside Yuuri, no doubt surrounding him in his scent. Then Princess Zhilian started speaking to him as though they were old friends, though their voices were lowered this time.

"What did you expect?" Yuri asked.

"Not this," Leonid answered, shaking his head in disbelief as he looked at Victor and Yuuri laughing quietly at something the princess had said. "But it's...much more intricate than anything I ever saw in my father's court, for all the machinations that went on. No, this is...something quite different."

Answers like that frustrated Yuri. What the hell was he supposed to know about what went on in his dead grandfather's court? He barely remembered the man and had never met a single one of his relatives. He knew more about the cloistered world of Petra's red-light district, the dangers and rivalries, every single threat around them, things Victor shielded him from. 

His mother clarified, "She's made her family's position clear by recognizing Victor as a prince. They recognize your father's claim, Yuri. They're on our side."

"I understood that much," Yuri muttered, watching the courtiers around them chat quietly, reacting to what had just occurred. Several eyes fell on them, and that was both uncomfortable and encouraging. No one was leering. Not even the alphas of the court. It occurred to Yuri that he too was a prince, so Zhilian might have called out to him in the very same way. But he was also much too aware of the target on him. On every vulnerable spot in his body. Unresolved feelings towards a young alpha warrior seemed meaningless compared to that. "I don't know why we have to do this in front of people we don't trust."

His mother said pragmatically, "At this point we may not have much of a choice. What matters is getting the Prince Regent and the Xi'anese government on our side. Even through these...theatrics. We have to trust that every servant, every courtier is loyal to their respective masters. For all our sakes."

"It's fucking risky," Yuri muttered, looking at the woman who featured prominently in his fragmented memories, nurturing and tough and strong and sensitive. She wasn't one for flowers like his father, but the music she played was always beautiful, and Yuri remembered how Victor acted as though interrupting her was the most sacrilegious action possible. She didn't have a piano. She picked up a shamisen around the same time that she began making baby clothes and played a different sort of beautiful tune, with the same amount of dedication. Right now, she was concentrating intensely, her eyes reminding Yuri of a cat who'd spotted a mouse, the mouse in this case being Zhilian.

But mice were crafty fuckers too. So was the princess. She was beaming as she watched Victor touch his swollen belly, direct and subtle all at once, no doubt taking note of every single thing that happened and was said in this banquet to relay to her brother. And then it would all evolve into something direct. A tangible strike against Antonov. 

His mother gave him a grim look, reminding him of his grandfather Yakov. "We're at war, Yuri. The quicker we win it, the better. I want to see that man dead, along with every single bastard that followed him."

Her scent flared alongside his, and Yuri supposed that there was more to war than the battles fought in some empty field.

* * *

He'd slipped away much later, and walked into the gardens to think about what he knew and what he had yet to know. Information and memory had become so valuable in the past few years, if not the past decade. He'd been so ignorant, and as stubborn as he was, Victor had kept so much from him to protect them both.

Yuri sighed and breathed in and out, sitting under the trees that bloomed green above him. There was color all around, even this late into the night. Perhaps it was thanks to the round moon in the sky. 

He understood why his father embraced gardens and put all his energy into flowers and plants and trees. It was quiet, demanding of time and focus, a different sort of outlet that filled the mind with a pleasant hum that preceded the reward of color and sweet scents. He didn't know if he himself could ever be that focused. He wanted action. Movement. To be direct and to get things done.

But this war against his family wasn't going to be as simple as that. And Yuri had no way of knowing what the future was going to look like.

A year ago he would never have guessed they would be _here_. All of them. And all his memories. He didn't know he would have his parents back, that his brother would have a baby and potentially survive to see it grow.

He never would have predicted that he would feel in this complicated way, for an _alpha_ , of all people. But an alpha who had saved his father and helped bring them all together again. 

Fuck. Fuck, it was happening so fast and all at once. The entire world, spinning so rapidly and knocking him off balance, and he just barely able to keep steady and on his own two feet. It left him dizzy, looking in all directions and finding no stable ground. All because of events that set everything in motion before he was born.

"Yuri."

The voice was steady. Familiar. So was the scent, though Yuri hadn't noticed it, deep in his thoughts as he was. He looked to his right, and spotted Otabek standing a few short feet away from him, his dark eyes steady as the pond in front of Yuri.

Again, like a cat spotting something. Only Yuri didn't feel like a mouse in this situation. No. The opposite. "Come here. I'm not going to run away." He guessed the alpha wanted to talk about just what Yuri had been avoiding for days, coward that he was.

Well, he wasn't going to be a coward anymore. He wasn't going to be a docile omega, or one that hid from an alpha. After all, he'd scented Otabek too. 

Otabek, for some goddamn reason, lifted a corner of his mouth in a smirk, as if something amused him. "I'm surprised you did," he said, slowly moving towards the stone bench Yuri sat on. 

It felt familiar, the sensation of his body heat even though they were a foot away from each other. They'd had an easier time existing around each other before this scenting shit ever happened. But there was another source of heat, and that came from the indignant blush on Yuri's face as he growled, "I'm not exactly an expert on all this bullshit. Up until a year ago I thought alphas spread their scent all over like they're telling everyone, 'fuck off, this is mine.'"

The smirk disappeared, and Otabek frowned as worry clouded his scent. "...Is that how it felt when I--"

"No," Yuri quickly interrupted, frowning in thought. "No, I'm not saying that...It...didn't feel that way when I smelled you on me."

"How did it feel?"

"I don't know," Yuri said with a shrug, his blush quickly spreading to the rest of his body at the soft tone of Otabek's voice and the intensity of his gaze when he asked the question. "Not like _that_." Fuck...Fuck, he was going to have to answer that, wasn't he? But he had to think about his resolve to be the opposite of a coward. Someone more direct in contrast to all the bullshit around him. But he still felt incredibly hot and couldn't look Otabek in the face when he finally muttered, "I...I guess I liked it."

The following silence was torture. Yuri almost wanted to grab Otabek by the shoulders and shake him, because this honestly had to be one of the worst things he'd ever had to endure. He listened to Otabek breathe shakily, watched his knuckles turn white when he clutched the edge of the bench, and Yuri didn't dare lift his eyes. His heart was beating so painfully, like it was going to fly out his throat.

Finally, _finally_ Otabek had mercy, and began to speak quietly, "...I...The day that we met...I saw a fierce-eyed omega dancing in that square, and he landed in my arms."

Yuri inhaled sharply and looked up before he could stop himself. Otabek was staring at him, and he added in that same quiet voice, "After that, I couldn't stop thinking about you. I think about you...so much. It's distracting, and...and I can't help it. You're strong and proud and fearless...And beautiful." He smiled then, and Yuri felt...hypnotized. He didn't know if he felt flattered or shy or...whatever this feeling was. He just knew his heart was still doing that annoying, racing thing as Otabek added, "Not because you're an omega, but because you are...You're Yuri."

Again, nothing concrete. No name to put to the feeling that made Yuri's chest feel like it was going to explode. Just that still-spreading warmth throughout his body, and a desire to see, feel more and see what happened. Yuri swallowed, suddenly so apprehensive and off-balance again. "...I've never been kissed before," he confessed, throwing the words out somehow like his heart wasn't in his throat. He swallowed again, trying to dislodge that awful sensation as he thought about all those kisses he'd witnessed between Victor and Yuuri. He always rolled his eyes at them. "Don't move, Beka," he said, forcing himself to keep moving, to be as stubborn as he'd always been.

It was Otabek's turn to be off-balance, and he stared at Yuri as color spread across his face. "Yuri...?" he asked, still quiet as he watched Yuri get up and stand in front of him.

During moments like these Yuri would feel like he was far away from his body, watching everything happening to him like a spectator. He knew he was very much in his body, because all he could see was the look of total surprise on his face as Yuri took it between his shaking palms. "Don't move," he said, his voice not sounding like his own as he stared into those dark brown eyes, a million things going through his mind as he leaned down and kissed the alpha.

He kissed Otabek and held his face in his hands, every heartbeat echoing in his ears.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please leave a comment and take care of yourselves! See you on the next chapter of "tell me where your love lies".


End file.
